Alma started off with an 8-3 lead due to sloppy play by the Knights with turnovers and poor decisions on offense. The Scots had many second chance opportunities and were getting everything they wanted inside the paint. Calvin was then forced to use a couple early timeouts in hopes of settling down. But then the turnover plague hit Alma as the Knights went on a 13-3 run to gain an 18-17 lead with a little over four minutes to go. But the Scots of Alma were feisty in this one closing out the half on a 7-0 run of their own to take a 24-18 halftime lead.
The second half began with each team trading baskets until Calvin finally fought back for a one point lead that was quickly erased by a Scot three-pointer. Calvin answered with a three-ball by freshman Kristi Brummel that put the Knights up to stay at 44-42 with 8:22 left. Calvin freshman Marcia Harris then came up with five crucial points down the stretch, converting a three-point play on the break to put the Knights up 50-44 and then knocking down a baseline jumper with 2:33 left to put Calvin up 53-46.
Calvin then connected on 10 free throw attempts inside the final 2:10 of play to pull away for the win.
Calvin was led in scoring by Harris and junior Lisa Winkle who both had 16 while Brummel and sophomore point guard Lindsey Peuler each had 10. Winkle also had 10 rebounds to collect her 28th collegiate double-double including her 14th of the year. The Scots were led in scoring by Katey Peacock with 14 while sisters Darcie and Erica Philp had 10 points each.
Calvin shot just 25.9 percent in the first half but rebounded to shoot 56.5 percent in the second half to finish with an overall shooting clip of 40.0 percent. The Knights were also 20 of 30 (.667) at the free throw line. In addition, Calvin held a 14-point advantage in bench scoring as Calvin’s reserves scored 17 while Alma’s bench had four points.
Calvin head coach John Ross talked about how they struggled early on. “It was interesting how we struggled shooting in the first half but we got it done in the second half with Harris stepping it up at the end of the game.”
Calvin (23-3) will travel to Hope Saturday to battle the Flying Dutch who defeated Olivet 78-51 in Thursday’s other semifinal game. The game will be at 3:00 p.m. at Hope’s DeVos Fieldhouse with the winner receiving an automatic bid to next week’s NCAA III Tournament. Hope handed Calvin two of its three losses this year, defeating Calvin 64-54 (at Calvin) and 71-46 (at Hope). The two rivals will be meeting for the ninth time in MIAA Tournament play with both teams winning four games apiece.
“We have an opportunity to go down to Hope and give it another whirl,” said Ross. “Hope is arguably one of the best teams in the country so it will be quite the challenge.”
In 14 years of MIAA Tournament play, Calvin is now 21-9. Calvin will be making its 10th appearance in an MIAA Tournament Championship game including its third straight. The Knights are 4-5 in MIAA Tournament Championship games.
Newspaper Box Score Alma College vs Calvin College 02/23/06 7:30 pm at at Calvin Fieldhouse (GR, MI) At at Calvin Fieldhouse (GR, MI) CALVIN COLLEGE 63, ALMA COLLEGE 52 ALMA COLLEGE (13-12) Katey Peacock 6-17 2-2 14; Erica Philp 5-9 0-0 10; Darcie Philp 5-6 0-0 10; Ashley Borcherding 3-11 0-0 8; Ashley Matuzak 3-6 0-0 6; Abigail Way 1-2 0-0 3; Emily Niemi 0-0 1-2 1; Lauren Graves 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-51 3-4 52. CALVIN COLLEGE (23-3) Marcia Harris 6-11 4-5 16; Lisa Winkle 5-10 6-10 16; Lindsey Peuler 2-8 5-8 10; Kristi Brummel 4-5 1-3 10; Kelly Trewhella 0-0 4-4 4; Charis Larson 2-8 0-0 4; Sarah Partridge 1-3 0-0 3; Emily Schrotenboer 0-0 0-0 0; Sarah Winkle 0-3 0-0 0; Jennifer DeFauw 0-0 0-0 0; Erica Boonstra 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 20-50 20-30 63. Alma College.................. 24 28 - 52 Calvin College................ 18 45 - 63 3-point goals-Alma College 3-9 (Ashley Borcherding 2-5; Abigail Way 1-1; Ashley Matuzak 0-2; Katey Peacock 0-1), Calvin College 3-13 (Lindsey Peuler 1-5; Kristi Brummel 1-2; Sarah Partridge 1-3; Charis Larson 0-3). Fouled out--Alma College-Abigail Way; Ashley Matuzak, Calvin College-None. Rebounds-Alma College 29 (Darcie Philp 5; Ashley Matuzak 5; Ashley Borcherding 5), Calvin College 31 (Lisa Winkle 10). Assists-Alma College 10 (Ashley Matuzak 3; Ashley Borcherding 3), Calvin College 15 (Marcia Harris 3; Kristi Brummel 3; Charis Larson 3; Lindsey Peuler 3). Total fouls-Alma College 20, Calvin College 13. A-175 Calvin will play at Hope in MIAA Tourney Championship game Saturday at 3:00pm.